Drama

Pretty Red Dress

Travis has just been released from prison and it quickly becomes apparent that much has changed while he’s been gone. While girlfriend Candice is on the up and auditioning to star in a Tina Turner musical, daughter Kenisha is struggling in school and her relationship with her mum is tense. So, when Travis buys Candice her dream dress for an audition, rather than smoothing over the family’s problems, it ends up creating even more. As secrets and desires left unsaid threaten to spill out, Travis is forced to re-examine who he is and how he wants to be perceived in the world.

Release Date : 2023-06-16

Language :English

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : Protagonist PicturesBBC FilmBFI

Production Country : United Kingdom

Alternative Titles :

Cast

Character Name : Travis

Original Name : Natey Jones

Gender : Male

Character Name : Candice

Original Name : Alexandra Burke

Gender : Female

Character Name : Kenisha

Original Name : Temilola Olatunbosun

Gender : Male

Character Name : Nathan

Original Name : Emeka Sesay

Gender : Male

Character Name : Jim

Original Name : Ben Caplan

Gender : Male

Character Name : Danny

Original Name : Thomas Grant

Gender : Male

Character Name : Shaun

Original Name : Nicholas Bishop

Gender : Male

Character Name : Party Guest

Original Name : Divarni A. Groce-Balogun

Gender : Male

Character Name : Sam

Original Name : Eliot Sumner

Gender : Male

Character Name : Emeka

Original Name : Michael Junior Onafowokan

Gender : Male

Character Name : Constable Newman

Original Name : James McNicholas

Gender : Male

Character Name : Prison Officer

Original Name : Lee Byford

Gender : Male

Character Name : Vivian

Original Name : Tsemaye Bob-Egbe

Gender : Male

Character Name : Offender Manager

Original Name : Jo Wheatley

Gender : Female

Character Name : Craig

Original Name : Ade Dee Haastrup

Gender : Male

Character Name : Steven

Original Name : Joshua Blisset

Gender : Male

Character Name : Walbury's Colleague

Original Name : Andrea Francis

Gender : Male

Character Name : Fletcher

Original Name : Edwin De La Renta

Gender : Male

Character Name : Dockey

Original Name : Baba Oyejide

Gender : Male

Character Name : Drag Queen

Original Name : Matthew Jacobs Morgan

Gender : Male

Character Name : Clive

Original Name : Rolan Bell

Gender : Male

Character Name : Paul

Original Name : Darrell Privett

Gender : Male

Character Name : Tyson

Original Name : Basit Ayanwusi

Gender : Male

Character Name : Wesley

Original Name : Tione Chance

Gender : Male

Character Name : Tayo

Original Name : Alexander James-Blake

Gender : Male

Character Name : Cicely

Original Name : Maria Almeida

Gender : Female

Character Name : Jayne

Original Name : Patricia Potter

Gender : Female

Character Name : Shak

Original Name : John Omole

Gender : Male

Character Name : Deborah

Original Name : Angie Le Mar

Gender : Male

Character Name : Lloyd

Original Name : Mark Monero

Gender : Male

Character Name : Victor

Original Name : Dexter Flanders

Gender : Male

Reviews

CinemaSerf

@Geronimo1967

2023-12-24

I was really disappointed in this film. The trails suggested a cutting edge drama about a man challenging the norms of his community but what we actually get is an over-scripted, not very well acted, family melodrama. "Travis" (Natey Jones) returns home after a spell in prison to his wife "Candice" (Alexandra Burke) and teenage daughter "Kenisha" (Temilola Olatunbosun). "Candice" has an audition to play in a Tina Turner musical and has her eyes on a spangly red dress. It's expensive, but "Travis" manages to find a job with his brother and manages to buy it for her. She loves it, but, well... so does he. At this stage we begin to sense that he has some identity fluidity issues, but that is best kept under wraps for fear it will not be well received by his family, nor by their friends. It's only when "Candice" comes home unexpectedly one evening that the relationship dynamic suddenly changes for all of them. The premiss is bold - it does aim fairly and squarely at bigotry and homophobia, but the execution is slow and ponderous. Alexandra Burke is a great singer but she is not a great actress and as the ever more contrived family shenanigans mount up - including some issues for the young "Kenisha" - the thrust that made the film interesting in the first place gets rather lost. Jones is adequate, but again his character is largely undeveloped with little of a backstory to give us a sense of just how this relationship evolved, and ultimately I just think Dionne Edwards relied a little too much on the shock value of the thread and of audience assumptions rather than develop this into something more powerful. It's watchable, bit misses the goal I'd say.